Biodynamic Gardening and Farming: Why Healthy Soil Matters
Every harvest begins beneath our feet. Soil supplies plants with water and nutrients, but it is also a habitat for organisms that break down organic matter and help keep nutrients circulating. Looking after this living system is essential to growing food over the long term. Biodynamic farming places this relationship at the centre of agriculture. Its guiding idea is that the soil, plants, animals and people on a farm belong to an interconnected whole cycle. What we take from the land needs to be balanced by what we return.
What is biodynamic farming?
Biodynamics grew out of a series of lectures given by Rudolf Steiner in 1924. It combines organic growing methods with a wider philosophy of working with natural cycles and treating the farm or garden as a living organism. In practice, this means building fertility through compost, carefully managed manure, crop rotation and cover crops. It also means encouraging diversity: different crops, flowering plants, hedgerows and habitats that support wildlife. Biodynamics has distinctive practices of its own. These include specially prepared compost additions made with herbs such as yarrow, chamomile and nettle, and field sprays known as horn manure and horn silica. Many practitioners also use calendars to guide sowing, cultivation and harvesting. For a home gardener, the most accessible starting point is to care for soil, recycle organic material and observe how the garden changes through the seasons. [see resources below1]
What do we mean by soil depletion?
Soil depletion means a lack of nutrients and biodiversity. Also, leaving soil exposed, compacting it, or repeatedly disturbing it can also contribute to degradation and erosion. Whenever we take from the soil (harvest), we need to add organic matter, mulch, or compost so the cycle can renew again and you keep the soil healthy and cared for years to come.
What does the research show?
One particularly valuable source is Switzerland’s DOK trial, which has compared biodynamic, organic and conventional farming systems since 1978. A FiBL and Agroscope study drawing on 40 years of trial data found that the organic systems supported greater biodiversity and soil fertility. Their soils contained 16% more humus, with measured soil organism activity up to 83% higher than in the conventional systems studied. There were trade-offs. Organic yields averaged around 85% of conventional yields, with differences between crops. The biodynamic system performed particularly well for soil fertility and humus formation. [3]
Soil, farming and wildlife are connected .The consequences of land management extend beyond the field. WWF’s Living Planet Report 2024 reported a 73% average decline in the size of monitored vertebrate wildlife populations between 1970 and 2020. This refers to population trends in mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and amphibians. It does not mean that 73% of species became extinct, rather than the decline of quantiy of wildlife. In this case, overexploitation, invasive species, pollution and climate change also contribute. The global decline cannot be attributed to fertilisers and pesticides alone, but is certainly a big risk factor. [4]
Another European bird study offers a closer link to intensive agriculture. Published in 2023, it examined 170 common bird species at more than 20,000 monitoring sites across 28 countries, using records from 1980 to 2016. Farmland bird abundance fell by approximately 57%. The researchers identified agricultural intensification, particularly high pesticide and fertiliser use, as the strongest overall pressure among those examined. Birds that depend on insects and other invertebrates were especially affected. [5] These findings reinforce the need for farming that provides food while protecting the habitats and food sources on which wildlife depends.
What can we do as individuals?
We cannot turn back the clock, but we can make useful changes in our gardens and in the way we buy and use food.
Return organic material to the soil. Compost suitable kitchen scraps and garden material, and collect fallen leaves to make leaf mould. Use mature compost as a soil amendment and leaf mould as a mulch or soil conditioner.
Keep the soil covered. Mulch bare beds and consider a suitable cover crop when vegetable plots would otherwise stand empty. Avoid walking on wet growing beds, which can compact the soil.
Get to know a grower. Ask at a farmers’ market how crops are grown, soil fertility is maintained and pests are managed. Where affordable, support organic or biodynamic producers. I receive a weekly seasonal vegetable box, and I enjoy both its flavour and the connection it gives me to what is being harvested.
Eat with the seasons and waste less. Choosing locally seasonal produce can reconnect us with the growing year. Strawberries in winter may be appealing, but they are outside the local outdoor season in the UK. Origin, transport, storage and heated growing conditions all matter when considering environmental impact. Planning meals and using what we buy are practical steps throughout the year.
Grow something yourself. Start with herbs on a sunny windowsill or a few containers outdoors. Add tomatoes or salad leaves as space and confidence allow. Even a small growing project gives us a closer understanding of the work behind our food.
Make room for wildlife. Grow a range of flowering plants, retain a small untidy corner and avoid routine pesticide use. Encourage natural predators and try barriers, hand removal or other targeted approaches when pests become a problem.
Feed according to need. Mature compost and well-rotted manure can be useful, but more is not always better. Use manure from a reliable source and assess soil needs before adding extra nutrients. Homemade nettle feeds may be part of a gardener’s routine, but they are not a substitute for balanced soil management.
Keep an observation diary. Record rainfall, temperature, soil conditions, sowing dates and harvests. If you follow a lunar calendar, include it in your notes alongside these factors. Your records can help you explore patterns without assuming that one factor explains every result. But you will develop a deeper understanding how nature works.
A practical place to begin For me, the lasting appeal of biodynamics is its invitation to pay attention: to what we grow, what we take from the soil and what we give back. We can’t all be biodynamic farmers. So start with a compost bin, a planted container or a conversation with a local grower can be a first step towards a more thoughtful relationship with food and the land. Healthy soil takes sustained care. The choices we make this season can help support the next years to come.
Sources
- Biodynamic Association: Biodynamic Principles and Practices
- FAO: The Importance of Soil Organic Matter
- FiBL: 40 Years of Organic Farming—Benefits for Soils and Efficiency (German)
- WWF: Living Planet Report 2024
- Rigal et al. (2023): Farmland Practices Are Driving Bird Population Decline Across Europe
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